


Cat's Cradle

by liv_andlet_die



Category: Batman - All Media Types, Batman and Robin (Comics), Nightwing (Comics), Red Hood and the Outlaws (Comics), Robin (Comics)
Genre: Brotherly Bonding, Brotherly Love, Crack, Damian Wayne Feels, Damian Wayne is Robin, Dick Grayson is Nightwing, Fluff, Jason Todd feels, Jason Todd is Red Hood, Swearing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-10
Updated: 2018-06-10
Packaged: 2019-05-20 09:36:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,083
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14892131
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/liv_andlet_die/pseuds/liv_andlet_die
Summary: Alfred the cat likes Jason. Damian is a good brother (sometimes).





	Cat's Cradle

**Author's Note:**

> Because Jason deserves unconditional love. Damian is observant and actually cares about his other brothers, no matter what he might say.

“Ow-! Shit, Dick, could you be a little rougher? I don’t think you’ve stabbed every inch of me just yet.”

“Stop whining, Jay, it’s not that bad.”

“I think I’ll be the judge of that, asshole, I’m the one with the gash and fifty-three extra puncture wounds, thanks to you.”

Damian leans against the doorframe of the infirmary, listening to his older brothers bicker as Dick stitches up a large wound in Jason’s side. They’re both still half in costume. Dick has the top-half of his Nightwing costume pooling around his waist, a nasty looking cut running over his shoulder. Jason is in a similar state of undress, leaning awkwardly to the side with an arm in the air as Dick works on the wound along his ribs. It’s not too deep, but it’s long and jagged. Not a clean cut. Definitely the priority of the two wounds.

He doesn’t make a sound as he enters the room, leaning into the shadows against the back wall. They don’t notice him there, too busy bickering. Damian’s fairly sure that Dick is just trying to distract Jason from the procedure – a tactic that seems to be working so far.

“You’re lucky I was around to help, Jason, this could’ve been much w– stop moving!”

“Hey! I had everything under control, I didn’t need-“

“Oh my god, just shut up and let me finish this, you big baby.”

Jason grumbles, muttering something foul under his breath that makes Dick huff out a laugh. They sit in silence for a while, Jason grimacing every once and a while at a particularly strong pull at his skin, but otherwise not making more of a fuss. Damian just stands there and observes, not entirely sure why he’s still there, or why he hasn’t demanded Dick’s attention already, but something about watching his older brothers interact like this is… interesting.

Dick is as relaxed as usual, committed to his job at stitching up the large wound in his brother’s side. Jason isn’t on guard, like Damian is used to seeing him. He’s a little tense, his muscles bunching in his shoulders, but that could be from the pain or the awkward position. His demeanor is casual. As much of a fuss he might put up, Jason trusts Dick.

The three brothers are still in silence, two unaware of the third in the room, when Alfred the cat pads through the doorway.

Damian’s attention is immediately drawn to the feline at his feet, brows furrowing in confusion. The cat wasn’t usually allowed down here, how did he manage to find a way into the Cave? Did Pennyworth let him in?

He doesn’t have much time to contemplate it, or even react to the new presence, before the cat is walking away from him in disinterest and heading over the stretcher in the middle of the room.

Damian tries not to feel betrayed by that.

Dick and Jason look down at the cat in similar confusion, the eldest brother pausing in his ministrations to stare at the animal as it hops up onto the bed and sits down in front of them.

“Um. Is that the demon brat’s animal?”

“Jay.”

“What?”

Dick sighs, rolling his eyes and moving to continue work on the stitches. “Yes, that’s Alfred.”

“‘Alfred’?” Jason snorts. “He named it after _Alfred_?”

“Yup.” Dick smiles fondly. “I think it’s pretty fitting.”

Alfred blinks up at the two, sitting elegantly at Jason’s feet. Jason is looking at the cat with an odd look of apprehension, as though waiting for the creature to attack. Damian feels a rush of pride for his pet. To instill that fear in Jason’s eyes with just his presence is an accomplishment worthy of some Whiskas later this evening.

“Why… is it looking at me like that?”

Dick grins. “I dunno, Jay. Maybe he likes you.”

As if on cue, Alfred steps carefully over Jason’s legs to move closer to his side. Jason shifts away uncomfortably, then hisses in pain as the movement causes Dick’s needle to pluck harshly at his skin. He growls under his breath, Dick chuckling quietly. The cat stares up at Jason’s face, who seems to be actively avoiding his gaze while trying to keep an eye on him as best as possible.

Damian is wondering what the cat is up to, what he’s about to do next, when Alfred quickly shoves his body against the non-injured side of Jason’s chest and starts to purr like a tractor.

“What the f-? What’s it doing, Goldie?”

“Uh. I can’t answer that one.”

Damian rolls his eyes, finally stepping into the light and crossing his arms. “He’s helping you.”

Jason jumps, cursing in pain as he once again causes Dick’s needle to slip. “Jesus, kid, how long have you been standing there?”

“Long enough.”

Dick frowns with concentration at a particularly jagged part of the cut. “What did you mean by ‘helping’ him, Dami?”

Damian moves to stand next to the stretcher, his arms still crossed. “Cats purr at a frequency that promotes healing. Alfred knows that you’re injured, so he’s assisting in healing your wounds.”

“You’re kidding.”

“I’m not.”

Jason looks down at the cat in disbelief, watching as Alfred moves to curl up more securely against his side and purr even louder. “Why?”

“Perhaps Richard is right, and Alfred has decided to like you. You better be worthy of it, Todd.”

Staring down at Alfred resting against his side, Jason’s expression softens just slightly. Seemingly of its own accord, his hand moves to stroke behind the cat’s ears. Alfred lifts his chin to grant Jason better access, who moves instinctively to scratch at the soft fur there.

“Aw, look at that.” Dick smirks, winking at Damian while Jason is distracted. “I always knew you were a big softie, Jay.”

“Shut up.”

Dick finally stitches up the last edge of the gash and snips off the medical suture, tossing the needle and scissors into a tub of disinfectant. “There you go, Jaybird. All patched up.”

Jason groans as he sits up properly, twisting his torso gently to test his movement with the stitches. Alfred stands up when Jason moves, but instead of jumping down from the stretcher like Damian anticipates, the cat simply curls up on Jason’s lap , still purring.

“Okay, kid, are you putting him up to this?”

Damian smirks, enjoying the confusion and mild discomfort on his brother’s face. “I wish I could say I was, but Alfred has a mind of his own.”

Jason frowns. “Well, I have to get up so Dickhead here can use the stretcher.”

“Uh, no thanks.” Dick grimaces. “You bled all over the place, Jay. I’ll use the other one.”

“Well, I still have to get up and help you.”

Damian shakes his head, raising a hand to halt Jason’s movement. “I can help Richard with his sutures, Todd. Why don’t you stay there with Alfred? He seems quite comfortable.”

Dick smothers a laugh with his hand as he stands up, moving across the room to settle on the extra stretcher. Jason is scowling as Damian follows Dick, his lips twitching into a smirk. The youngest and oldest brothers settle into a routine they both know well, setting up antiseptic and needles together quickly and efficiently while their other brother fumes across the room.

Damian watches from the corner of his eye as Jason stares down at the small creature in his lap. Alfred is perfectly still, except for the rise and fall of his tiny chest, already fast asleep. Jason, probably thinking that the other two boys in the room are distracted, lifts his hand to scratch at the top of Alfred’s head again. The cat rolls onto his side in Jason’s lap, pushing his head against his hand as if to say ‘more!’

Dick is obviously trying to not to smile as he watches Jason play with the cat, Damian moving to focus on his big brother’s injury. As much as he antagonises his more volatile brother, Damian trusts Jason not to hurt his pet. Jason Todd is a lot of things, but he’s never cruel to anything smaller or weaker than himself.

“Y’know,” Dick murmurs over his shoulder to Damian, “I’ve always thought a pet would be good for him.”

Damian cocks an eyebrow. “What gave you that impression?”

“Not sure.” Dick shrugs, then sucks in a gasp through his teeth as the motion causes a stitch to rip. Damian throws him a reproachful look, which he responds to with a sheepish smile. “Just… something besides himself to care for might be good for him. Give him… I dunno, more of a reason to come home…”

Damian purses his lip in thought, staying quiet. Dick falls silent as well, staying as still as possible while Damian quickly closes up the wound. It’s nowhere near as big as the gash Jason had been sporting, so it doesn’t take as long to stitch up. By the time they’re done, and Damian has taped some gauze over the wound, Alfred has already stretched out fully in the divot between Jason’s legs, who’s now running his fingers through the soft fur of the cat’s stomach.

Dick stands up and stretches his arms over his head, gingerly, trying not to pull at the stitches. “Well, I think that’s just about enough excitement for me for one night. Thanks for the help, Dami.”

“Don’t lay on your injured side, Richard, I don’t want to have to redo those sutures in the morning.”

Dick gives his little brother a thumb’s up. “‘Night guys, don’t stay up too late.”

“Sure, ‘dad’.” Jason snickers, still scratching Alfred’s tummy.

“I mean it, cat-whisperer.”

Jason lifts his free hand to send a vulgar gesture in Dick’s general direction, to which Dick blows an exaggerated kiss as he leaves. With that lovely note, Damian and Jason are left alone in the med bay.

Jason seems legitimately distracted by the creature in his lap, and Damian remains sitting in silence across the room from them. As much as he wants to feel slighted by his pet’s actions, he can’t. He’s… glad. It’s an odd sensation in response to something involving Jason, but he supposes something like this would have had to happen eventually.

Damian stands up from his stool, rolling his shoulders after having been hunched over Dick’s injury.

“I suppose I should retire as well.”

He walks over to the doorway in a way that usually has Alfred trotting over to his feet to follow, and sure enough, the cat lifts his head at the sound of his master leaving and promptly jumps off of Jason’s lap. Damian’s surprised at the flicker of disappointment on Jason’s face, but it only lasts a second.

“Clean up your filth before you leave, Todd, Pennyworth shouldn’t have to scrape up your bodily fluids every time you decide to stop in.”

Jason scowls, jumping off the stretcher and shucking his jacket back over his shoulders. “As if I’d leave that mess for Alfred.”

“Just making an assumption based on previous evidence.”

“Well you know what they say about assuming things.”

Damian rolls his eyes. “Goodnight, Todd.”

Jason’s lips twitch into a half-smile as he reaches for the disinfectant. “‘Night, brat.”

Damian doesn’t miss Jason’s lingering look at Alfred as they leave the room.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

He’s not sure why he’s there. He’s not sure why he’s doing this. He’s not sure what got him to this point in the first place, but Damian finds himself knocking on the front door of Red Hood’s current safehouse with a cat carrier in one hand and a bag of food in the other.

It had been spur of the moment, impulsive. They’d been passing the local animal shelter, on a detour from the usual way home after school, when Damian had just demanded that Alfred pull over into the parking lot of the institution. Alfred had given him a withering look, assuming that Damian was on the hunt for yet another animal to add to his menagerie, but he’d insisted it wasn’t for him.

When Damian had finally mumbled something about Jason and cats, Alfred had promptly exited the vehicle and lead the boy inside.

Now, as his big brother opened the door and leaned against the frame with an eyebrow raised, Damian was beginning to regret his decision.

“Uh. Hey. What’s up, kid?”

Damian shoves Jason aside as he enters the apartment, which was far less dingey than he’d been anticipating. There was a rug, and a couch, and the coffee table was clear of debris. The floor was clean.

This would be far more suitable than Damian was expecting.

“Close the door.”

“Why?”

“Just do it.”

“What are you doing, kid?” 

“It’s a simple request, Todd.” 

Jason sighs, running a hand through his hair in resigned frustration as he swings the door shut. “There, happy?”

Damian sets the carrier down on the floor. It has a blanket draped over it, so he figures Jason’s apprehensive body language is to be expected. “Yes. Come here.” 

“What are you up to, brat?” 

“If you would just come closer, you’d find out.” 

Jason crosses his arms, planting himself firmly to the floor about eight feet away from Damian. “Nuh-uh, I’m not falling for that again, brat.” 

Damian purses his lips to keep from grinning. He’d forgotten about that particular incident. “Fine, stay there. Just… be still, then.” 

He sits down on the floor next to the carrier and slowly pulls off the blanket. Damian notices Jason tensing up when he realizes what the object actually is. Damian fiddles with the latch at the front of the cage for a moment, then opens the door slowly. 

Jason sucks in the smallest gasp when he realizes that there’s really something _inside_ the carrier, and it’s _moving_. Damian just sits quietly next to it, waiting for the animal inside to reveal itself.

After about five minutes of both brothers sitting completely still, the smallest orange kitten pokes her head out and starts sniffing her surroundings. 

“That’s… that’s a cat.” 

Damian rolls his eyes. “Your observational skills cease to amaze me.”

“Why do you have a cat? Why did you bring it here?”

Damian reaches into the bag he’d left on the floor next to him and pulls out a small bowl, opening the bag of cat food he’d brought and pouring some into it. The moment he places the food in front of the kitten, she starts to wolf it down like she hasn’t had a meal in a week.

“She needed a home.”

“She?”

“Yes, she.”

“What’s her name?”

“She doesn’t have one yet.”

Jason frowns, watching the tiny thing scarf down the dry food. “You didn’t answer my question, before. Why did you bring her here?”

“I just told you, she needs a home.”

“This ain’t a home, kid.”

“It could be.”

Jason’s eyes flick up to meet Damian’s, who stares back at him just as intensely. “Why did you bring her here, Damian?”

Ooh. Full name and everything.

“I… you…” Damian scowls, huffing out a sigh as he eventually averts his eyes from his brother’s gaze. “…Alfred.”

“What?”

“Alfred. The cat.”

Jason frowns. Then he moves, slowly, as not to scare the kitten, and sits down on the ground a few feet closer to Damian. “What about Alfred?”

“You… He liked you. That doesn’t happen a lot.”

“So?”

“So… Grayson said it might be good for you.”

“What?”

“Having an animal.”

Damian can tell Jason’s lips are twitching into a smile, and he can’t tell if that annoys him or not.

“Goldie said that, did he?”

“Yes.”

“And did he buy me the cat?”

“No…”

“No?”

“No, he didn’t.”

“So,” Jason chuckles, “you bought me a cat.”

Damian growls. “Don’t let it go to your head.”

They sit in silence for a while, watching the kitten lick the bowl clean, then start to explore further outside the carrier. She has a watchful eye on both of them but doesn’t seem afraid. Damian takes that as a good sign for her future with his brother.

“I’m not sure this is a good idea, kid.”

Damian looks up from the kitten to raise at eyebrow at Jason. “No?”

“I’m never in once place, always moving around. Sometimes I don’t come back to the same safehouse, if it gets compromised.”

Damian shrugs. “Cats are resilient. You can train them on a leash, the same as a dog. She can come with you. They’re also fairly self-sufficient. You can leave them with food and water for a few days and they’re usually fine.”

“She’s a baby. I won’t have time to train her.”

“You think I have spare time?” Damian rolls his eyes. “I have five animals. You make time.”

Jason sighs, his gaze softening as he looks back down at the kitten. “…what if she gets hurt?”

“She won’t.”

“How do you know?”

“You’ll protect her with your life.”

Jason’s eyes return to Damian’s, who looks at him with an odd determination that he usually saves for Dick, or Bruce. It’s insistent and persuasive.

“…alright.”

Damian smirks, getting to his feet and brushing debris from his trousers. “You’ll need a litter tray, and some toys. Get a leash as soon as possible, if you want to train her. She needs to get used to it.”

Jason gapes, blinking in surprise. “Wait, you’re leaving me with it? Already?!”

“I think you’re competent enough to handle one night on your own. I can come back tomorrow, if you already need help by then.”

He looks back and forth between the kitten and his little brother. “But… but..!”

“You’ll be fine, Todd. I trust you.”

They share a look that says all Damian needs it to say before he begins to gather his things. Jason just watches the cat as Damian makes his way towards the door, turning back to see his brother with the most adoring expression he’s ever seen on his face.

“Damian, wait.”

His hand pauses on the doorknob. “Yes?”

“…thank you.” 

Damian stares at his brother for a moment, then lets a small smile grace his lips. “Goodnight… Jason.”

He leaves the apartment with that smile still on his lips, watching through the closing door as the kitten starts to sniff at Jason’s hand. Damian had a good feeling about this. That small smile returns the next morning when he hears Jason call after the kitten as she races around the apartment.

He names her ‘Penny’.


End file.
